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TheMaeatae were a confederation of tribes that probably lived beyond theAntonine Wall inRoman Britain.
The historical sources are vague as to the exact region they inhabited, but an association is thought to be indicated in the names of two hills with fortifications.[1] Near the summit ofDumyat hill in theOchils, overlookingStirling, there are remains of a fort[2] and the name of the hill (in GaelicDùn Mhèad) is believed to derive from name meaning the hill of the Maeatae.[3] The prominenthill fort may have marked their northern boundary. The first excavations of Dumyat were led by Dr Murray Cook, who recovered a radiocarbon date from a newly discovered external ditch dating to the 5th to 7th centuries AD.Myot Hill,[4] nearFankerton, plausibly marks their southern limits. A discussion of two views of the importance of Dumyat and Myot Hill is given in Wainwright.[5] There are three other potential Maeatae placenames in Scotland, potentially giving them a territory from Balfron to West Lothian and potentially St Andrews.Dunmanyn, Dalmeny, West Lothian (James 2013, :‘P-Celtic in Southern Scotland and Cumrbria: a review of the place-name evidence for possible Pictish phonology’,Journal of Scottish Names Studies 7: 29-78.),Cremannan, Balfron, Stirlingshire (Taylor, S, Clancy, T O, McNiven, P & Williamson, E 2020ThePlace-Names of Clackmannanshire.Shaun Tyas: Donnington) andRummond (Rodmanand), St Andrews, Fife (Taylor, S 2009The Placenames of Fife, Vol. 3 St Andrews and the East Neuk. Donnington: Shaun Tyas).
Cassius Dio describes them in detail in hisRoman History (Book LXXVII),[6] and is later quoted byJoseph Ritson and others.[7]John Rhys seems convinced that they occupied the land between theFirth of Forth and theFirth of Tay or parts of what is nowClackmannanshire,Fife andStirlingshire.[8] He also suggests that theIsle of May might derive its name from the tribe. Dio mentions the Maeatae were between the wall and the Caledonians but there is some dispute over whether he is referring to Antonine's Wall[9] orHadrian's Wall.[10]Alexander del Mar says no-one really knows the identity of the Maeatae but he mentions that some authorities think they may have had a Norse origin.[11]
They appear to have come together as a result of treaties struck between theRoman Empire and the various frontier tribes in the 180s AD under the governorship ofUlpius Marcellus.Virius Lupus is recorded as being obliged to buy peace from the Maeatae at the end of the second century.[12]
In 210 AD, they began a serious revolt against the Roman Empire, which was reportedly a very bloody affair on both sides.[13] Another revolt took place the following year.[14] In 213 AD, Joseph Ritson records them receiving money from the Romans to keep the peace.[15]
The Miathi, mentioned inAdomnán'sLife of Columba, probably to be identified with the SouthernPicts, have been posited as the same group, their identity seemingly surviving in some form as late as the 6th or 7th centuries AD.[16]
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